


Flare Up

by actually18pigeons



Series: Whumptober 2020 [10]
Category: 9-1-1 (TV)
Genre: Caring Eddie Diaz (9-1-1 TV), Chronic Pain, Eddie Diaz Takes Care of Evan "Buck" Buckley, Exhaustion, Flare Up - Freeform, Hurt Evan "Buck" Buckley, Hurt/Comfort, Minor Evan "Buck" Buckley/Eddie Diaz, Whump, Whumptober, Whumptober 2020, Worried Eddie Diaz, minor blood tw, minor cuts, no.21, post getting squished by a firetruck, sleepy evan "buck" buckley, vomit tw
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-23
Updated: 2020-10-23
Packaged: 2021-03-09 05:42:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,265
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27158806
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/actually18pigeons/pseuds/actually18pigeons
Summary: Off of a chronic pain prompt - Buck has a flareup sometime between healing from the accident and being reinstated. Pre-lawsuit, pre-Buddie (but there's definitely mutual feelings).
Series: Whumptober 2020 [10]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1941847
Comments: 7
Kudos: 163





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I will literally post chapter 2 tomorrow. I had it all in a document and the end wasn't coming up the way I wanted so this felt like a kinda okay place to chop it. Lemme know what you think. For Whumptober Prompt #21- Chronic Pain. 
> 
> Also, I don't have chronic pain, so maybe this is a terrible depiction. I'm sorry if it is.

It started as a numbness the night before, a tingling beginning in his toes, slowly working its way up his calf settling around his knee. It was uncomfortable, but Buck knew it was a stage of respite before the pain truly began. Sighing, he prepared himself for what was going to be a rough night. 

He makes a cup of tea tiredly before grabbing the bottle of Nyquil and the bottle of painkillers off the bathroom counter. Cursing quietly he grabs one of his crutches from the closet, slipping it under his arm to support his tingling calf. It’s a slow ascent up the stairs, and he arrived in the loft just before the tingling began to turn into a seizing cramp that envelops his lower leg. He sat down heavily on the mattress. 

It briefly ran through his mind that he had forgotten to brush his teeth, but he knew there was no way he was going to make his way back down those stairs to the bathroom- shit he had left his phone downstairs on the kitchen counter. He sighed as he fell back onto his bed. He could handle this. It was just another flareup. And hopefully Eddie would come in the morning and he could get his phone then. He tugged the covers back with some difficulty, pulling his legs up onto the bed before trying to relax into the pillows and ignore his clenching muscles. 

He lay there for what felt like hours, staring up at the ceiling in the dark, but when he checked the bright numbers on his alarm clock it had only been 20 minutes. This was going to be a long night. He wanted to call Eddie. Have him come over and fix this. He probably would have, had his phone been nearby. He grabbed the bottle of Nyquil off his bedside table instead, chugging what was probably one dose, maybe two, cringing at the taste. Unsurprisingly it didn’t help. His mind was tired but his body was on fire, waves of pain flowing through every tired bone and muscle. 

Buck lay there flexing his foot periodically. It was dark and time dragged on. He took another swig of Nyquil at some point. It’s hard to remember. His mind wandered to the morning- Eddie would be here, with comforting words and cautious hands, for a short time before heading off to work. 

After the tsunami, Eddie had resumed dropping Chris off at Buck’s apartment a few mornings each week. He prayed that it was one of the days Eddie would decide to stop over alone, the mere idea of having to put on a front for Christopher draining him further. Having Chris over was amazing, it helped them all, Chris got to spend time with his Buck, Carla got a break, and Eddie got the ease of mind knowing his son was safe while he was at work. And Buck… Buck got an eight-year-old ray of sunshine to brighten his increasingly dull and dismal days. But maybe not this morning. The pain was getting increasingly hard to mask, and he didn’t want Chris to see him this… weak. 

He abandoned lying on his back in favor of slowly rolling onto his side, curling around his leg as nausea rose in his stomach. He wanted to uncurl, maybe sip some of his now-cold tea, but the thought alone was exhausting. He pressed desperate fingers into his clenched calf, willing the muscle to relax. He knew having it tense for hours would do him no favors in the morning, but in his foggy painfilled mind there was nothing he could think to do. 

He must have dozed off slightly sometime in the early hours of the morning because before he knew it his alarm clock tore him out of fitful sleep. He stared up at the ceiling for a few more seconds as the alarm blared, before rolling over- and there it was. A gnawing agony in his ankle. He imagined he could feel the metal of the long-gone rod grinding up against bone, screws stripping themselves within the joint. 

He should get up, Eddie would be here soon. And he didn’t want his best friend to see him like this, curled up in bed, sticky with sweat as his leg tried to kill him. He propped himself up in bed, looking at his uncovered leg for any visible sign, any proof that the pain was real, wasn’t just in his head. But his leg looked exactly as it had been the night before, pale skin marred with thick pink patches of scar tissue. He wiggled his toes cautiously falling back onto his pillow as his calf cramped, a squeezing tension like he was being crushed all over again.

He knows he should get up, any additional hours of stillness will just make the pain worse. He sits up slowly, carefully pulling his bad leg over the edge of his bed letting his feet rest on the floor. He reached for where his crutch should by, leaning next to his bed, but… shit, he had left his crutch by the stars, an insurmountable six feet away from his bed. He stood unsteadily on his good leg, hesitantly extending his leg in front of him before slowly putting weight on it. 

Buck screamed as a fire ignited in his ankle, tearing its way up his leg into his aching body. He lurched forward, trying to catch himself on his bedside table, but he misjudged the distance, sending the pill bottle and mug of tea flying off, ceramic shattering as the bottle rolled several yards, resting against the railing.

He must have blacked out because as he blinked open his eyes he was curled on the bedroom floor next to his mattress. He looked around, his bad leg painfully twisted underneath him, and the floor was… bloody? He ran his hands over his arms finding several small cuts near his elbow that were slowly dripping blood down his forearm. Shit, the ceramic shards. The nearby shard read “est fire” a shattered remnant of the “hottest firefighter” mug Eddie had gotten him as a joke after the calendar contest. Honestly, he was glad it was broken. The shattered mug matched his shattered dreams of the job he loved. 

He tried to move, he really did, tried to sit up, get to his crutch, get to the meds, any way to get the pain to stop. But then he heard the front door open, thankfully only one set of footsteps made it into his apartment. He relaxed into the floor trying to avoid the shards surrounding him. “Eddie?” He called softly. 

Eddie scanned the downstairs, not expecting Buck to be awake yet, but checking nonetheless. He grabbed Buck’s phone off the kitchen counter before slowly ascending the stairs up to the loft.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, the only time I've ever stuck with an update promise. I made it a bit better, still not thrilled with it but hey. I decided to make this 2/2 chapters bc I don't feel like this story in particular needs to continue from where I leave off. Unless y'all disagree? Also, this chapter is Whumptober Prompt 23 - Exhaustion. Thanks for reading!

“Jesus Buck, what happened?” Eddie stared at his partner curled on the floor, he took in the tense muscles, the grimace on his face, and the small puddle of blood on the floor. 

Eddie dropped to his knees by Buck’s side, careful of the sharp mug shards scattered around him. Buck’s pain-filled eyes opened as Eddie put his hand on his shoulder. “Buck, what’s wrong?”

“M’leg,” Buck groaned as he reached down to claw at the offending limb. 

“Okay, okay, and where’s the blood coming from?”

Buck’s face crumpled with unprecedented emotion, “I broke your mug.”

Eddie smiled, “that’s okay bud, I’ll get you another one. I’m going to leave you alone for one second so I can grab the first aid kit. I’ll be right back.”

Eddie dialed Bobby as he galloped down the stairs, “Hey cap, is it alright if I’m a few hours late, I’m with Buck and he needs someone right now,” he grabs the first aid kit and a broom before running back up the stairs. He glances back to where Buck lay, eyes screwed shut as his hands scrambled for purchase on the wooden floor below him. “I will cap,” Buck distantly heard Eddie reply, and seconds later he felt Eddie’s strong hands on his back again, rubbing soft circles into the tense muscles. 

“Hey, Buck. The captain gave me the day off, he’ll get someone to cover me so I can stay here with you, okay?” Buck smiled slightly with a nod, jaw still clenched tight. Eddie made quick work of cleaning Buck’s arm, pressing on several small bandaids. He stood to grab the broom but Buck reached out wildly, grasping Eddie’s shirt. “It’s okay Buck, I just need to sweep the mug pieces away from you so you don’t get hurt. Then we can move you so you’re more comfortable.” Buck groaned, hands clenching into fists as he let go of Eddie’s shirt. Eddie dealt with the shards quickly, returning to Buck, kneeling closer to him as he ran his hand over his shoulder. 

“You think you’re okay to get up?”

“No,” Buck whispered with a grimace. 

“Okay, that’s okay, we can stay here a while longer, but the wood floor isn’t doing your leg any favors.” 

So they sat together for a few more minutes, Buck’s jaw clenched, eyes screwed shut as he tried to move his leg, Eddie rubbing his back and whispering gentle words. After a time Eddie tried again.

“Can I help you up now?” Buck nodded stiffly in response, hands reaching out to grab Eddie’s forearms. Eddie squatted, bringing his hands under Buck’s armpits, pulling him up onto his bed. 

The room spun as Buck moved, ever-present nausea worsening as he changed positions. He lurched forwards, smacking Eddie lightly in the chest. Thankfully Eddie got the message and pushed the nearby trashcan under Buck’s head as his body revolted against him. Eddie sat beside him hands skimming over his back as Buck retched. After a few minutes of gagging, he spit a few times before flopping tiredly onto the bed behind him. 

His features contorted as he held back a groan, body curling around his leg, hands reaching down to grab it tightly. Eddie reached out, placing a gentle hand on Buck’s back. “What can I do?”

Buck vaguely gestured with his head. Eddie followed the gesture, eyes settling on the pill bottle on the floor. “The painkillers?”

Buck nodded, squeezing his eyes shut, lips pursed in pain. Eddie retrieved the pills, pouring two of them into his hand, “I gotta grab some water, I’ll be right back babe.” The phrasing slipped out, but Eddie hoped Buck was too out of it to notice. They didn’t seem ready for that conversation yet. 

Eddie returned a minute later, holding a plastic cup of water, not looking for a repeat of the previous incident, and sat on the bed next to Buck’s taut body. Gently sliding a hand behind Buck’s head, Eddie helped him sit up enough to take a sip of water and swallow the pills before Buck flopped back against the pillows. 

“Has it gotten any better?” Eddie questioned, placing a hand on Buck’s side in what he hoped was a soothing manner. 

“Nah, the drugs take a while to kick in, all I can really do is wait. You don’t have to stay.”

“Buck it’s 8 am, I have the day off. Of course I’m staying.”

Buck grumbled, rubbing a hand tiredly over his eyes, “you really don’t have anything better to do today?”

“Than making sure my best friend doesn’t pass out alone in his apartment again? Nope. How about I make you some more tea?” Despite the throbbing throughout his body and slight nausea, tea did sound nice. Without waiting for verbal confirmation Eddie got up, running a hand tenderly through Buck’s messy hair. “I’ll be right back.” 

Buck must have begun to doze off again because before he knew it Eddie was back at his side with a warm mug of peach tea. Buck tried to sit up, he really did, but the searing pain shooting up his leg stopped him before he made any actual progress. Eddie cupped Buck’s face, hands still warm from the mug, “are they starting to kick in? You look a little better… more relaxed.”

Buck nodded tiredly, eyes still closed. “Do you think you could get more sleep? I know you had a long night.” Buck nodded again, words not really making sense in his pain-addled brain as Eddie’s thumb softly ran along his cheekbone. Buck moved his arm clumsily patting the bed next to him, looking to Eddie for confirmation. Now that the pain was lessening, the weariness from the last 24 hours was sinking bone-deep. 

Eddie shuffled around to the other side of the bed, pulling the comforter back as he slid into the bed a fair distance away from Buck. He wasn’t sure how coherent Buck was in this moment, so he didn’t want to assume this was some major step in their relationship. Buck was probably half asleep, there probably wasn’t any subtext. 

But he wasn’t as sure as Buck rolled over towards him, hesitantly stretching his leg out, sighing quietly in relief as the pain didn’t worsen. Eddie didn’t move, their bodies still not touching. If this was something Buck wanted to do, he would let him, but he didn’t feel comfortable making any moves on his half-asleep best friend. But he didn’t expect Buck to sleepily throw an arm around his waist, pulling their bodies closer until Buck was practically lying on his chest. 

“Sleep well Buck,” Eddie murmured into Buck’s hair. 

“Thanks, babe,” Buck whispered tiredly against Eddie’s neck. 

Oh.


End file.
